OMNI - El Vals de los Duendes (2002)

OMNI - El Vals de los Duendes (2002)

Omni biography
OMNI was founded in the late 80's, by three core members: Mike STARRY (lead guitar), Salvador VELEZ (rhythm guitar) and Jose Luis ALAGABA (bass). New drummer Ismael COLON entered the band in September 2001. Their progressive style is fed from the symphonic parameters of CAMEL and GENESIS, incorporating clear ethnic cut environments and spanish folklore. All their material is exclusively instrumental.

"Tras El Puente" is actually a selection of demos recorded between 1990 and 1993. Lots of good jams, reminding me of some of the late 70's German bands. With "El Vals De Los Duendes" (2002), their second album seem to be more focused and a bit more developed, and they are still firmly rooted in the 70's classically-oriented style (with Spanish folk influences). The music goes from beautiful keyboard flights, to delicate guitar parts, to really heavy bits, and even has a little saxophone here and there. It's also noticeable that some vocals appear on "Rompeolas" and the eponymous track, and benefit from the warmth of the Spanish language. You will flip over this one!

Critically acclaimed among prog fans worldwide, "El Vals de los Duendes" showed a band that had patently taken full advantage of the diversity of musical ideas that all members provided during the writing and arranging process. But it didn't take too long before this diversity gave way to musical differences, which eventually generated an internal turmoil in OMNI's line-up. Bassist Jose Luis Algaba and rhythm guitarist Salvador Velez intended to re-direct the band into the realms of Flamenco-meets-Latin jazz, while founding lead guitarist Mike Starry was determined to keep the prog core intact. The crisis grew so unbearable that keyboardist Alberto Marquez (also prog-oriented) quit and, a few days later, Starry officially dissolved the band in October 2003. Fortunately, this hiatus was soon followed by a reformation, with Starry and Marquez returning to the fold and calling back drummer Ismael Colon and wind player Pepe Torres. Newcomers Jesus Cabral "Chuchi" (bass) and Juan Rios (Spanish & rhythm guitars) helped to retake the sextet format. During 2005, OMNI has been working on demos of new material, while shaping what will be the repertoire for their next album in 2006.

felixzs пишет:Спасибо! А других альбомов случайно нет?